Your HomeFit online check report
Version: HomeFit v1.1
Thanks for completing your online check.
The home looks like it needs some improvements before being HomeFit. Your next step is to get some quotes and products installed to the recommendations below, then reassess. Once you’ve made the improvements, ask one of our assessors to do an independent HomeFit assessment.
| Looking Good | Needs Work | Un-answered | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dry | |||
| Mould | - | - | |
| Kitchen ventilation | - | - | |
| Bathroom ventilation | - | - | |
| Groundsheet | - | - | |
| Warm | |||
| Foil insulation | - | - | |
| Roof insulation | - | - | |
| Curtains and windows | - | - | |
| Draughts | - | - | |
| Heating | - | - | |
| Safe & Efficient | |||
| Water heating | - | - | |
| Shower | - | - | |
| Lighting | - | - | |
| Smoke alarms each floor | - | - | |
| Bedroom smoke alarms | - | - |
Looking good
The home has a kitchen rangehood
Great. Kitchen rangehoods allow moisture from cooking to be removed directly, reducing the need to ventilate with opening windows and reducing the risk that cooking moisture travels through the rest of the home.
Make sure to clean the filter regularly (they can often be put in dishwashers) to keep the rangehood running effectively. Check the rangehood is effective by holding an A4 piece of paper under it and see if the fan can lift it up. Lastly, to be HomeFit make sure the rangehood expels air to the outside and not into your roof - look for an outside vent.
All bathrooms have extractor fans
Great. Bathroom fans are one of the best things you can have to keep your home dry and warm and are a requirement of HomeFit and the Healthy Homes Standards. To be effective, fans should have an airflow of at least 25 litres per second (or have a fan ducting diameter of at least 120mm), which should be enough to hold up an A4 piece of paper.
Check that the fan ventilates to the outside, either through a wall, or if in a ceiling, through ducting connected to a grille on an outside wall or soffit, under the eaves.
Switch on the fan each time you take a shower or bath, and make sure it runs for at least 15 minutes after all water has drained away. A simple timer connected to the light switch can make this easier to manage and ensure everyone uses it. Don’t worry too much about the energy use if you accidentally leave it running too long. Fans are very cheap to run (less than 1c an hour).
Your home has good curtains and/or double glazing
Nice one! If you have curtains, be sure to use them, morning and evening, to let in that free heat from the sun and trap it as long as possible overnight.
If you have double glazing this will dramatically improve the thermal comfort of this home and reduce heat loss through the windows, which means heating works much more efficiently.
It’s still important to have 'good' curtains though, so aim to have both! By “good” we mean at least two layers, full length to the floor, and/or closed at the top (by a pelmet, the ceiling, or tight-fitting track).
For those areas where full-length curtains are inconvenient or just not possible (above heaters or kitchen benches for instance), we recommend Roman or cellular - sometimes called honeycomb - blinds. These should still be tight fitting on the side and against the sill and have at least two layers of blind material.
The home has no sources of draughts
Great to hear the home has no major sources of draughts.
The home has a heat pump in the main living area
This is one of the more popular and energy efficient forms of heating. Heat pumps are recognised heaters under HomeFit and the Healthy Homes Standards as they are large, fixed, efficient heaters that are suitable for living areas and bedrooms in well-insulated homes. Make sure you know how to use them effectively.
The home has at least one smoke alarm on each floor
Check that they are photoelectric and, if not, consider upgrading.
The home has smoke alarms either in each bedroom or within 3m of each bedroom
Check that they are photoelectric and, if not, consider upgrading.
Could use some work
The home either smells damp or has visible mould
Dampness or visible mould are signs that a home is not warm and dry. This could mean that the home does not have enough heating, is improperly insulated, is not very well ventilated or moisture is entering the home from the outside. This could be from the ground under the home or through a leak.
Carrying out the HomeFit self-assessment should help you understand how better to heat, insulate and ventilate your home. Make sure you’re turning on the bathroom fan or opening a window when showering, as well as regularly airing out the home to remove damp, stale air.
The best way to clean mould is to use a solution of 70mls of white vinegar and 30mls of water. Spray it on affected areas, leave it for up to an hour, and then wipe it off with a clean damp cloth.
The crawl space under the home does not have a groundsheet (ground moisture barrier)
HomeFit and the Healthy Home Standards recommend installing a groundsheet. A DIY install can cost as little as $200. See the EDA Factsheet on ground moisture barriers for step by step instructions.
Insulation companies can install it for you relatively cheaply, especially if you also need underfloor insulation done at the same time.
While you're looking under the floor check that air vents in the walls of the crawl space are free from vegetation or dirt building up outside. Air vents are often too small, blocked or not in sufficient numbers to create good cross-ventilation under a home.
Foil Insulation Present
Consider replacing the foil with bulk insulation, especially if it is damaged. Foil could be an electrical risk, so be careful not to touch it. Ask an insulation company to quote for a minimum of R1.3 underfloor insulation.
You’re not sure how much roof insulation the home has
Get a qualified insulation company to check for you. To pass HomeFit and the Healthy Homes Standards you need at least 120mm of roof insulation but, if you're installing new insulation, we recommend at least R3.6 in most of the North Island and R4.0 in the South Island and Central Plateau. A supplier directory is provided at the end of this report.
You may have downlights that require a gap in the insulation. These will need to be upgraded to meet the HomeFit standard, as they could reduce the effectiveness of your insulation (see an installer or electrician).
The home has an electric hot water cylinder but it isn't wrapped
Electric cylinders are the most common form of hot water heating in New Zealand but they can be relatively inefficient because heat is constantly escaping from the stored hot water.
Electric cylinders are accepted under HomeFit provided that they are well insulated. Newer cylinders (installed after 2002) usually come factory fitted with enough insulation but older cylinders should be wrapped.
Wrapping cylinders can save a lot of energy over the lifetime of the cylinder. Cylinder wraps can be bought from a DIY store and are easy to install. You can also improve efficiency by insulating the first metre of the hot water pipe leading from the top of the cylinder (lagging). Lagging can be bought from your local DIY or hardware store and is simple to install. For more information see this Energywise advice on hot water.
The showers are wasting a lot of hot water
Consider installing a low flow shower head or flow restrictor. Look for a shower head with a WELS (Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme) rating of 3 or more, or a flow rate of 9 litres per minute or less. For more information see this Energywise advice on hot water.
Sounds like the lighting in this home isn’t very energy efficient
Time for an upgrade. Replacement LED bulbs are widely available and very good value for money, especially in areas of the home where the lighting is used a lot like in the main living space and kitchen.
You may have downlights that require a gap in the insulation. These will need to be upgraded to meet the HomeFit standard, as they could reduce the effectiveness of your insulation (see an installer or electrician).
We don’t all have the time or expertise to fix up our home.
Here’s a handy list of professionals who can help make your home HomeFit. Some can even certify your home when they’re done!